


House Ghosts, or this house is full of (lost) ghosts

by threedices



Series: KHR Rare Pair Week 2018 [5]
Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Genre: Feelings Realization, Headcanon, Id Fic, Implied Relationships, M/M, Past Character Death, Past Relationship(s), Secret Relationship, Twisted and Fluffy Feelings, Working Out My Feelings Through Fic, and what giving the Tri-ni-sette might have meant to him, no one writes about Kawahira, so I wrote something
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-18
Updated: 2018-06-18
Packaged: 2019-05-24 03:49:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14947026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/threedices/pseuds/threedices
Summary: Kawahira and Daemon Spade are both arrogant, manipulative men who think they know best. Some things, like feelings, can still sneak up on you.





	House Ghosts, or this house is full of (lost) ghosts

Kawahira sent his companion a passionless look.

“You lost.”

Daemon chuckled. “One could say the same about you.” 

Kawahira turned back to his ramen. “I have lost nothing in this. With the addition of the Vindice the Tri-ni-sette guards itself now.” He slurped. “Less work for me.”

Daemon was watching him now.

They had met in Kawahira’s home, a contemporary place, because even he had to admit that time stood not still.

“Do I have a noodle on my face?” Maybe his tone was sharper than needed, but Kawahira was still reeling a little.

Not from Daemon being in his home. They had known each other for a long time, by now. Ever since Daemon had come to him, practically begging and mad with grief, and Kawahira had thought him to let go of his body.

Not even because most people didn’t see him like a fellow Mist could.

No, this was about losing the Tri-ni-sette.  
Even if he had agreed to give it up, even if he claimed to be glad, it had been so long a part of his life and identity, it was hard to settle into this new life.  
After.

“You told me I needed to let go of my attachment to the past, to my lover, and ignore that love, because it would drag me down and back into feeling. Into compassion. Was that true?”  
Daemon had affected a questioning air, with a mocking hint of suspicion.

It set Kawahira’s teeth on edge.  
His temper was already frayed and now Daemon was questioning his motives, methods, him.

“What are you implying?”

"Well, I just thought ... Never mind.”

Any other man would have feared him by now.

But Daemon knew with certainty what he was capable of and yet he taunted him so.

"Speak plainly," Kawahira growled.

"I remembered Elena. Let my self." Daemon was completely serious. His voice and face had gone softer on her name.

It took Kawahira by surprise. More surprising was the feeling of ... unease it brought him.

Hadn’t he lost enough, should he lose his only companion in this long time as well?

That was the true reason for teaching Daemon, apart from a strange mix of apathy to humanity in general, the chaos Daemon might bring them and the feeling of kinship in the moment when Daemon was raging and raving against the unfairness of it all and how much he had lost.

That had struck a chord with Kawahira, even after all this time. Sepira had not been that long dead and they had been, not friends, not lovers, but the same, in a way no one else got any more, on this whole planet.

Kawahira had been too vicious, too lonely, to not let Daemon out of his flesh and blood cage and too careless to what it might mean or come to mean to him.

Hindsight.

You always knew better when you had watched things fall apart.

"The question is," Daemon continued, "was it deliberate of you? To give me this advice?"

Kawahira stalled, hummed.

Daemon’s smile grew knife sharp. Wouldn’t it be convenient for you. His voice was whisper soft. To teach me and make me dependant on you. He turned his face into a study of thoughtfulness. Make me your perfect little toy. However you wanted me.

Kawahira tried to ignore the absolutely ridiculous picture Daemon painted here. As if he would groom himself a lover. He felt a hot kind of resentment growing in him.

He held no interest in humans. Those were lies and constructs and that one time a perfectly made illusion that needed a believable excuse.  
Just because he told people he was married when they showed too much interest or lied to the delivery girl when she needed replacement clothes.

Not that Daemon would think that. He hoped.

It turned something sour into his mouth and Kawahira grimaced. his illusions where too good and when his feelings got involved, his Flames sometimes manifested in uncontrolled ways.

He almost hated Daemon for putting him in this situation.

Almost.  
Almost but not quite.

"You insufferable man," he managed to grind out between clenched teeth.

Daemon had watched him with interest, which confirmed that he did not truly think Kawahira had grooming him to take to bed.

That soothed him a little. Barely.

Kawahira took a deep breath to center himself.

It was still salvageable.

Much calmer, he said, "maybe you should leave."

Daemon never looked away from him. His eyes had taken on an strange glitter and when he rose slowly, Kawahira felt a bit lost as to how to predict his actions.

He was usually better at this.

But then, as well as he had learned to read humans, which Daemon still was, Daemon had also spend quite some time in Kawahira’s company.

Mists were adaptable.

"Or maybe," Daemon said, stepping closer in slow, deliberate steps, "I should stay."

When he stopped directly in front of Kawahira's chair, Kawahira frowned, as an attempt at hiding his confusion.

Daemon was acting .. strange. Stranger than usual, at least.

He felt a slight resistance when he tried to reach for his tea, as a manner to have something to do while figuring things out, which meant Daemon put just enough effort into these bonds to have them be both noticeable yet still possible to break.

For once, Kawahira considered letting Daemon have his way, if only to have him stay a bit longer.  
It was a truly pathetic thought. He grimaced, a small, barely there twitch of his mouth.

"I hope you don’t mind," Daemon said brightly, before swiftly swinging his leg over Kawahira's and straddling him.

Kawahira went rigid with indignation. "I do mind, actually."

A cliché saying, but true in this instance. Wasn’t it?

Kawahira frowned again. His anger was not as pronounced as it might have been had it been anyone but Daemon. Strange.

Daemon slipped his arms around Kawahira’s neck, which did not help Kawahira relax at all.

Daemon rolled his eyes. "Don’t worry. I’m not trying to kill you."

Kawahira let his muscles relax a bit, but kept the frown in place.

"And what do you plan?" His tone was not quite as acidic as the situation warranted. How unfortunate.

Daemon frowned for a moment, before his smile turned from surprised delight to delighted mocking.  
Not quite his usual mocking, though.

He leaned close.

"Don’t tell me," Daemon said, his voice warm and velvety, "that you’ve never been kissed?"

Now it was Kawahira who rolled his eyes. 

And then paused, blinked.

"Not by a human."

It had been .. ages, Kawahira realized, blinking.

Daemon gave him a smug little smile. "Then I’ll be first."

All his bravado aside, his eyes flickered to Kawahira’s face when he leaned forward, very slowly.  
When he tilted his head, just so.  
And he only closed them when Kawahira closed his, as he let Daemon kiss him.

It was nice enough, because they were probably at the same level of practice.

Daemon had only loved once and Kawahira had loved so long ago it might as well have been never.

Daemon leaned back, his eyes bright and his smile brighter.  
As if he had won a duel or an argument.

Kawahira snorted.

Daemon’s smile turned sly. "I will need to lay low for a while."

Until I have gathered myself, he didn’t say, but Kawahira could infer.

"Then stay," Kawahira said, trying to project nonchalance and gruffness, but the way he held on to Daemon gave him away, he knew.

Daemon laughed, and it was a kinder sound than Kawahira had expected.

Against his will, Kawahira felt a certain fondness flood him.

Daemon smiled. A sharp one, but still a far softer breed than his usual ones, with mischief tucked into a corner.

"I feel recently a bit ... diminished. That fight was quite taxing, you see. So you might have to share some Flames with me."

It was a sweet smile, as far as Daemon went. It was also hiding his nervousness.

Kawahira had felt him tense in the silence that followed.

He sighed. Daemon would be a messy house guest, mostly because he had rather strong opinions on interfering with humanity and Kawahira didn’t share them. 

This could go awfully wrong. 

They might never quite mesh.

Might end up hating each other.

With a small pang, he remembered Sepira.

Sometimes he still missed her.

Missing Daemon would be different.

That decided it.

He breathed in, out, and then said, "stay".

Let a little bit of what he felt bleed through.

Daemon’s smile, small and without teeth, brushed against his temple.

"I’d love to." 

Kawahira nodded, once, and breathed Daemon in.

Began feeding Daemon a slow trickle of Flames.

It was calming to have someone so close again.

Sharing Flames.

This was the closest like home he had felt since he and Sepira parted ways.

Kawahira smiled. In a way, Daemon had more in common with her than with Kawahira. 

This might end badly.

Kawahira didn’t care. For once, that didn’t feel like numbness.


End file.
